Sonnet-18
-William Shakespeare (British poet and
dramatist)
Summary
“Shall I Compare thee to a Summer’s Day” is a
sonnet written by a famous English poet and dramatist, William Shakespeare. The
poet praises the beauty of his beloved in this poem.
The poet asks his beloved a
flattering question if he can compare her to a summer’s day. Immediately, he
dismisses this idea and says that his beloved’s beauty is more pleasant and
lovelier than that of summer. According to him, summer’s day is short and rough
winds in summer disturb the buds. Sometimes the sun shines too brightly and
it’s too hot and other times the sun hides behind clouds. He asserts that the
beauty of all natural things fades away with the course of time but the beauty
of his beloved is eternal(never-ending). He says that he has preserved her
beauty in the lines of poetry. Even death will not be proud of taking her. She
may die physically but her beauty will remain forever in the line of poetry. He concludes
that as long as human race remains on this planet and people can read the lines
of poetry, his beloved will be remembered by all readers. In this way, the poet
has immortalized his beloved through his art.
On the surface, the poem is simply a statement of praise about the beauty of beloved, but it also declares that writing can immortalize the person. It explores themes of love, beauty, and the power of art to preserve and immortalize the person.
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